Why leaders shouldn't be obsessed with likeability

Sam's Club CEO: More work needed on diversity issues | Ask the right questions to improve lines of communication | Get SMART to reach your goals Created for {EMAIL} | [Web Version] May 25, 2016 [Â] [WFF Leadership SmartBrief] Advancing and Empowering Women Leaders [SIGN UP] ⋅ [FORWARD] A Leader's Edge [Sam's Club CEO: More work needed on diversity issues] Sam's Club CEO Rosalind Brewer says she faced backlash and even death threats after discussing diversity issues on CNN last year. She said Wal-Mart, the parent company of Sam's Club, supported her, but the incident showed that the corporate world has a long way to go in addressing diversity. Speaking at an event this week, Brewer also discussed her upbringing and career, which included a number of years at Kimberly-Clark. "All I know is hard work and work ethic," she said. [Fortune] (5/24) [LinkedIn] [Twitter] [Facebook] [Google+] [Email] Career Progression: Developing Leaders [Ask the right questions to improve lines of communication] [Questions] (Pixabay) If you want the instructions you get from your boss or co-workers to be clearer, you should be willing to ask questions, writes Lea McLeod. Don't be afraid to ask for clarification during meetings or via email when you need it, adds McLeod. [TheMuse.com] (5/20) [LinkedIn] [Twitter] [Facebook] [Google+] [Email] [Get SMART to reach your goals] [Arrow] (Pixabay) By setting goals using the SMART framework, you can ensure that your goals are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and timely enough to be achieved, writes Lead From Within President and CEO Lolly Daskal. "When your goal is set and it's specific and measurable and attainable, you will get it done well and on time," Daskal writes. [Inc. online (free registration)] (5/18) [LinkedIn] [Twitter] [Facebook] [Google+] [Email] [Why leaders shouldn't be obsessed with likeability] Leaders shouldn't focus on whether their direct reports like them, writes Kathy Bloomgarden, CEO of Ruder Finn. Leaders should be compassionate, but they still need to get results and to make tough decisions. "[I]n today's fast-paced world and highly competitive market, being liked can't be a goal or an objective when it comes to leadership," she writes. [Fortune] (5/18) [LinkedIn] [Twitter] [Facebook] [Google+] [Email] [How to handle a resume gap] Mothers who take time off from their careers to raise children may have a hard time getting hired when they re-enter the workforce. Experts say it may be best for job seekers to address the reasons for this type of resume gap rather than ignoring the issue. [The New York Times (free-article access for SmartBrief readers)] (5/19) [LinkedIn] [Twitter] [Facebook] [Google+] [Email] SmartBrief Exclusives [On the Plate:] An original look at trends in restaurants and foodservice from SmartBrief [Chef adapts classic Cuban dishes for diabetes-friendly cookbook] [Ronaldo Linares] Linares (Dalyn Miller Public Relations) Chef Ronaldo Linares has teamed up with the American Diabetes Association to create a cookbook that offers healthy takes on traditional Cuban dishes and new Cuban-inspired cuisine. "As for Cuban cooking evolving, I have seen a lot of the Cuban chefs take it in their own direction but still stick to the flavors that made up Cuban food like citrus, cumin and bay leaf," Linares said. [SmartBrief/SmartBlog on Food & Beverage] (5/24) [LinkedIn] [Twitter] [Facebook] [Google+] [Email] [Non-GMO foods, new food delivery trend were hot at 2016 NRA Show] Foods that paired sweet and spicy from yogurt maker Chobani and Mike's Hot Honey were hot at the NRA Show in Chicago this week. The show's 2,200 exhibitors also showed off trends including a growing array of non-GMO products, a new trend of tapping driver networks for food delivery and new uses for the chickpea liquid that's gaining popularity as a substitute for egg whites. [SmartBrief/SmartBlog on Food & Beverage] (5/25) [LinkedIn] [Twitter] [Facebook] [Google+] [Email] Diversity and Inclusion [Gender pay gap is bigger for white-collar employees, analysis finds] The gender wage gap is especially pronounced among highly educated men and women in white-collar jobs, an analysis by The Wall Street Journal shows. Women without high school degrees were paid 79% as much as their male peers in 2014, whereas women with bachelor's degrees or higher were paid 76% as much as their male peers, the analysis found. [The Wall Street Journal (tiered subscription model)] (5/17) [LinkedIn] [Twitter] [Facebook] [Google+] [Email] Women and Innovation in the Workforce [Leaders need to step away from equating diversity to lower qualifications] Diversity talk in the workplace can be difficult to find, and many leaders are too quick to dismiss the discussion, writes Anna Kegler. Managers' biggest influence on inclusiveness comes in hiring and day-to-day management, where they can encourage variety over similarity. Keys to improving a company's culture are to stop describing people -- rather than environments -- as "diverse" and to nix the "lower bar" narrative, which links diverse hiring to diminished qualifications and is unsubstantiated by data, she writes. [The Huffington Post] (5/23) [LinkedIn] [Twitter] [Facebook] [Google+] [Email] Press Releases - [NutriSavings Adds Walmart to List of Participating Retailers for Health Plans That Reward Healthier Purchases] [Post a Press Release] Being a strong leader isn't about being popular. Kathy Bloomgarden, CEO of Ruder Finn, writing at [Fortune] [LinkedIn] [Twitter] [Facebook] [Google+] [Email] Learn more about the WFF: [About the WFF] | [Join the WFF] | [WFF Events] [WFF Programs] | [How to Partner with WFF] [Sign Up] [SmartBrief offers 200+ newsletters] [Advertise] [Learn more about the SmartBrief audience] Subscriber Tools: [Manage Subscriptions] [Update Your Profile] [Unsubscribe] [Send Feedback] [Archive] [Search] Contact Us: Advertising - [Chris Warne] P: 646.462.4647 Editor - [Amy Sung] Mailing Address: SmartBrief, Inc.®, 555 11th ST NW, Suite 600, Washington, DC 20004 © 1999-2016 SmartBrief, Inc.® [Privacy policy] | [Legal Information] Â